Grassroots Strategies to Combat Election Misinformation and Disinformation

Illustration by Helena Pallarés

Over the last decade, democracies around the world have seen the steady decay of civic trust, the rise of hyperpolarization, the growth of cooperation among authoritarian powers, and a host of ever-evolving threats to democratic institutions, exacerbated by the dissemination of harmful and inaccurate misinformation and disinformation. Misinformation (misleading information) and disinformation (deliberately false information) impede the informed decision-making of voters, but also undermine and erode trust in the media, government, and electoral processes. As countries navigate these challenges, grassroots strategies in combating the spread and influence of harmful and inaccurate information have proven to be a vital and effective complement to policy strategies and interventions.

Effective grassroots organizations are trusted voices that are uniquely positioned to identify misinformation that impacts the communities they serve, to implement strategies to combat misinformation, and to build communities that are resilient to future misformation tactics. These strategies include: (1) using education (civic, democratic, and media) to strengthen information ecosystems; (2) developing long-term civil society coalitions for fact-checking and community building; and (3) conducting localized community engagement activities and amplify trusted voices to effectively identify and counter misinformation.

By leveraging direct connections with communities, grassroots efforts complement and enhance the impact and efficacy of policy-based tactics designed to strengthen information ecosystems, during and between election cycles.

As the leaders of two civil society organizations in Brazil and the United States, we employ different strategies to support informed publics, but we are united by a desire to provide our communities with the skills and information they need to be active, informed, and empowered citizens. As a scientist turned democracy entrepreneur leading Fair Count, Jeanine Abrams McLean strongly believes in prioritizing the accuracy of data and information, recognizing that the spread of misinformation critically impedes the ability of the communities we serve to build and wield civic power in the United States. Similarly, as a young entrepreneur who helped build Politize! at the age of 22, Gabriel Marmentini realized he wasn’t yet a citizen but just an individual. His involvement in creating Politize! was driven by a personal need to transform himself into a fully engaged citizen. Recognizing that misinformation erodes civic understanding and engagement, he committed to providing Brazilians with the tools and knowledge needed to navigate and counteract false information, ultimately empowering millions across the country.

Our respective experiences in these two countries, along with the experience of other Keseb Democracy Fellows from Brazil, South Africa, and the United States suggests how the following strategies can be effective and broadly applicable across a range of democratic contexts. Grassroots innovators like ourselves are developing these strategies and creating templates for funders and organizations to work with and replicate, though special care should be taken to tailor solutions to local contexts by listening and engaging with communities on the ground.

Strategy #1: Using Education (Civic, Democratic, and Media) to Strengthen Information Ecosystems

To strengthen our information ecosystems, education for civic engagement needs to be locally relevant. In our contexts, we distinguish between three types of education: civic education, democratic education, and media education. Civic education provides access to diverse political knowledge, giving a new meaning to the importance of politics and access to basic tools to put it into practice, including how to participate in well-functioning production of high-quality, trustworthy information. Democratic education fosters autonomy and establishes fundamental principles for a healthy, tolerant society. Media education enables an understanding of, and access to different information-producing vehicles, as well as alternative and independent media.

Having the tools necessary to navigate a complex and flawed information ecosystem are crucial for empowerment. In Brazil, for example, the negative effects of a fragile information ecosystem are felt by all citizens, and we need to talk more about it. Many Brazilians live in news deserts, without access to high-quality, diverse information. Although Brazil is the country of WhatsApp, the quality of what is shared
on the platform is subject to debate. This problem applies to all social media in general, as algorithms create echo chambers that themselves lead to other types of information deserts and increased polarization.

This fragility encompasses uncertainty about the integrity of information, the absence of quality and diverse information, and the difficulty in interpreting diverse information. This can lead citizens to make decisions that are rooted in false premises and can further increase polarization and the likelihood of political violence. For example, during the 2018 and 2022 presidential elections in Brazil, there was a deluge of false news and conspiracy theories disseminated through social media and messaging apps. This included unfounded claims of electoral fraud, personal attacks on candidates, and false information about government programs and public policies. Additionally, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Brazil faced a significant challenge with the spread of misinformation about vaccines, treatments, and preventive measures. A 2020 study found that 73 percent of Brazilians believed at least one piece of misinformation to be true or probably true, illustrating the profound impact of false information on public perception. In another recent study, Brazil was identified as the country where people have the most difficulty recognizing fake news, with only 48 percent of Brazilians correctly identifying propaganda as false. This contrasts with countries like Luxembourg, where respondents were 7 percentage points more likely to identify propaganda as false than the overall average. This widespread belief in misinformation not only hindered efforts to control the pandemic but also deepened skepticism and confusion among the population. Several scientific articles published in Brazil support this, as well as a global survey by Avaaz.

In response to this information crisis in Brazil, Politize! – Civic Education Institute produces free and unbiased digital content and campaigns of civic education with a strong emphasis on problem-solving by each citizen, reaching 113 million unique users with digital content. It has trained nearly 3,000 civic leaders in solving local problems because the government—whether at the federal, state, or municipal level—will never be able to meet all of the population’s desires. Thus, the organization starts from a mental model of public governance where all actors must work towards solving public problems that affect them. The reality is that most people in Brazil and around the world have not been taught how to exercise their citizenship. Finally, the organization has trained over 17,000 educators through programs facilitated via cooperation agreements with government entities, specifically with state Departments of Education. By focusing on individuals while they are still in school, we can effectively instill a deep sense of citizenship from an early age, as it is in schools that we begin to transform information into knowledge, laying the groundwork for critical thinking and informed decision-making. This foundational period is crucial for shaping individuals who are more likely to engage actively in their communities and build trust in democratic institutions as adults. The challenge is to recognize that teachers themselves were not prepared for citizenship and need to be trained first.

As a recent innovation, the organization is aiming to enter the world of games and artificial intelligence to combat disinformation. Inspired by successful international models such as Bad News, Go Viral, and Harmony Square, Politize! is partnering with fact-checking agency Lupa and civic technologists AppCívico to launch IAgora, an online game designed to combat misinformation during Brazil’s 2024 elections. Utilizing inoculation theory, IAgora will educate Brazilians on recognizing and countering online manipulation and misinformation, including tactics driven by artificial intelligence, hate speech, digital populism, and extreme polarization. IAgora will equip users with the skills to identify and challenge fake news, supporting informed and democratic engagement during the elections.

Strategy #2: Developing Long-Term Civil Society Coalitions for Fact-Checking and Community Building

In addition to increasing civic education, democracy champions also need to combat election-related misinformation and disinformation by developing long-term civil society coalitions for fact-checking and community building. Examples from South Africa illustrate how grassroots strategies can help build or rebuild citizen and voter trust and reliability in information and demonstrate the power of partnerships and local media in enhancing the resilience of democracies.

In 2024, South African general election voters were forced to navigate the challenging landscape of misinformation and disinformation after it was found to be one of the two countries in Africa with the most documented disinformation campaigns. While this was not South Africa’s first encounter with nefarious misinformation campaigns, the country has seen an increase in misinformation spread through social and mainstream media. Ahead of the election, South Africa experienced an increase in “falsehoods about voting rules, migrants illegally registering to vote, [and] endorsements from external figures,” which aimed to confuse voters, undermine election integrity, and erode trust in democracy.

To mitigate the impacts of misinformation, several initiatives were established, including: a partnership between the Independent Electoral Commission, Media Monitoring Africa, and tech companies (Google, Meta, and TikTok) to fight online misinformation campaigns; a fact-checking coalition led by Africa Check; and a joint initiative of Media Monitoring Africa and the South African National Editors Forum focused on protecting election integrity. Of these, the fact-checking coalition led by Africa Check held the most promise of effectively utilizing grassroots strategies to help build reliability in credible news sources while equipping voters with the skills needed to identify misinformation. In addition to the engagement of professional fact-checkers and South African media outlets, the coalition utilized the influence and reach of
civil society organization SECTION27, which relies on community mobilization to advance socio-economic rights, climate justice, gender justice, and civic education campaigns. In addition to utilizing social media to dispel election-related misinformation identified by coalition partners, SECTION27 also distributed flyers with accurate voting rights information
via its network.

The Africa Check coalition model, which included national and international media and fact-checking entities working with grassroots organizations, represents a strategy that other democracy champions should look to emulate. While media and fact-checking entities may have robust networks, their ability to reach communities that are more vulnerable to misinformation may be limited, especially when there are no local trusted voices to help disseminate accurate information. Similarly, grassroots organizations typically do not have the capacity and/or resources to monitor and correct misinformation trends. By partnering with media and fact-checking entities, there is an effective pipeline to supply grassroots organizations with the information they need to inform their communities.

While this pivotal election has concluded, grassroots-centered fact-checking strategies should be supported and tested in non-election years to assess the efficacy of coalition models, to aid in the refinement of policy strategies and interventions, and to continue efforts to combat persistent and novel misinformation tactics. Effective grassroots organizations with large digital footprints such as Amandla.mobi, which has used civic technology tools to impact at least 11 million low-income Black women through hundreds of community-driven campaigns, could leverage its robust network and digital tools to ensure accurate information is effectively disseminated. Similarly, partnerships with organizations like Rivonia Circle, which focuses on educating and mobilizing South African communities around a myriad of democracy-related issues, could significantly amplify misinformation mitigation strategies year-round. For instance, their Democracy Builders program, which helps communities build solutions to local problems, could be used to identify misinformation about local issues while simultaneously equipping individuals with the skills needed to thoughtfully evaluate the information they encounter. Long-term partnerships with similar organizations could amplify the Africa Check coalition’s impact in safeguarding the integrity of information and empowering citizens.

Strategy #3: Conducting Localized Community Engagement Activities and Amplify Trusted Voices to Effectively Identify and Counter Misinformation

Finally, to effectively protect our information ecosystems from the spread of election-related misinformation, we must conduct localized community engagement activities and amplify trusted voices. Examples from the United States highlight how specific grassroots strategies can be used to effectively identify and counter misinformation and reinforce trust in democratic processes during and between elections.

In November 2024, the United States will witness a pivotal moment as millions vote in an election that could profoundly impact the health and vitality of democracy. The spread of election-related misinformation poses a significant threat to the ability of voters to make informed decisions. For instance, threats aimed at local election officials have led to record turnover rates across the country, hindering the correction of election-related conspiracy theories and other misinformation. Capitalizing on the influence of trusted voices, Keep Our Republic collaborates with local election officials to host community conversations to combat misinformation, with a strong focus on pervasive election-related conspiracy theories. They use local gatherings to teach community members about the electoral process, with the goal of arming individuals with accurate information that “they can spread…to their own friends, family and neighbors.” By amplifying the voices of trusted local officials and engaging in targeted outreach efforts, the organization hopes to mitigate the spread of false election information.

Furthermore, election experts are particularly concerned about the impacts of new AI technologies, such as deepfakes, which have the potential to manipulate audio and video content, disseminating false information with unprecedented realism. Similar to Brazil, the increasing number of news deserts across the United States exacerbates the negative impacts of misinformation in communities with limited access to accurate news. As local news outlets close or shrink in the face of diminishing resources, communities are left underserved or entirely devoid of reliable journalism. These communities can then fall victim to “pink slime journalism,” which “utilizes partisan reporting, [misinformation], and political propaganda that disguises itself as legitimate local news.” While efforts to support local journalism are significantly effective, scalability is difficult, limiting impact. Moreover, a significant number of news deserts are found in rural communities, which often lack the digital access needed in a digital news era.

To overcome these challenges, Fair Count uses tele-town halls to engage communities in conversations about democracy-related topics. Each tele-town hall directly calls up to 100,000 households, reaching community members with limited digital literacy and community members facing challenges in physically accessing a space. Relying on deep-dive community organizing, Fair Count is able to work directly with community members to identify locally relevant misinformation themes that are addressed during these interactive conversations. In addition to answering questions posed by community members that are accurately answered live by local experts and other trusted voices, panelists use scripts that educate community members about democracy-related issues throughout the event. For instance, ahead of the 2020 general and 2021 Senate runoff elections in Georgia, Fair Count hosted statewide tele-town halls to educate communities about upcoming elections mired in pandemic-related uncertainty. For example, callers expressed concern and uncertainty regarding the ability to vote in person early after requesting absentee ballots, and experts on the call were able to address their questions with accurate information in real time, fortifying them against the pernicious effects of misinformation and strengthening democratic principles.

Conclusion

As misinformation continues to evolve, so too must the strategies employed to combat it, with a continuous focus on education, community empowerment, and the reinforcement of trust in credible information sources. These experiences from Brazil, South Africa, and the United States underscore the importance of relevant civic education, local engagement, and tailored community-driven solutions in addressing the multifaceted challenges posed by the context. The strategies mentioned will go a long way in mitigating the impact of misinformation on all communities, but especially those that are otherwise neglected, because of the reach of the civil society organizations employing them.

It is natural for our minds, often untrained to think continuously in a civic-minded manner, to place greater importance on the topics discussed here during election years. This is why we specifically emphasize the importance of addressing these issues in a transversal and perpetual manner—citizenship is a life-time project and we must continuously combat novel misinformation tactics while educating and protecting vulnerable communities. More than ever, we need to recognize, value, and support the work of civil society organizations. It is not about doing the work that the government should be doing. It is about recognizing that the government will never be able to solve all the problems alone and that it is our civic responsibility to get involved in the public arena in order to be part of the construction of the solutions we would like to see.

Read more stories by Gabriel Marmentini & Jeanine Abrams McLean.